The Four Kingdoms
by myfoolery
Summary: At the end of the Missing Year, Regina kissed Henry and broke the curse. But the curse she broke wasn't the one they thought. Instead, she broke a longer, stronger curse, a curse that rewrote everyone's lives, and now everything is turned on its head.
1. Author's Notes

Inspired by The Queen's Men by TaylaNovak.

Canon is a lie. I change things and play with things to get the results I want. This fic contains ridiculous amounts of polyamory (ships listed below) and should not be taken seriously at all. This isn't crackfic, but it is shamelessly self-indulgent bullshit that I wrote for my own pleasure and decided to post because why not.

AO3 tags: Alternate Universe, Shameless Self-Indulgence, canon is a lie, Polyamory, so fucking much polyamory, monogamy is a lie, literally everyone/everyone - Freeform, the entire Enchanted Forest is a polycule, except Snow, villain Snow White, anti Snow White, Everyone lives, Canon-Typical Non-Con, Tarot

Pairs:

David/Regina  
Robin/Regina  
Jefferson/Regina  
Daniel/Regina  
Maleficent/Regina  
Emma/Regina  
Gold/Regina  
Graham/Regina  
James/Regina  
Ruby/Regina  
David/Belle  
Gold/Belle  
Ruby/Belle  
Killian/Emma  
Neal/Emma  
Killian/Abigail  
James/Zelena  
Graham/Zelena  
David/Killian

Trios:

Jefferson/Robin/Regina  
David/James/Regina (no incest)  
David/Daniel/Regina  
David/Killian/Regina  
Killian/Emma/Regina  
Ruby/Belle/Regina  
Ruby/Emma/Regina

Quads:

David/Regina/Belle/Gold  
David/Killian/Jefferson/Regina


	2. Chapter 1

Regina held Henry's face in her hands, a happy smile on her lips, warmth in her eyes. "I will never let you go away again." Her voice lowered almost to a whisper. "I promise." He smiled back at her and she added, "I love you, Henry," and leaned forward, pursing her lips to press them to his forehead.

Just as contact was made, Snow cried out, "No!" but it was too late. It wasn't the warm rainbow wind of a breaking curse that everyone was used to, but a searing golden flash, dazzlingly bright, but somehow it didn't cause pain to those observing, and at the same time, the ground shook, setting everyone off-balance for a moment before stabilizing again.

"What was that ?" Emma asked, eyes wide.

Nobody answered, too busy jumping into action. David took several steps away from Snow, drawing his sword and pointing it directly at her while Regina quickly moved in front of Henry and summoned fire to her hand. Instead of the fireballs she normally had, this time her entire hand was engulfed in purple-white flames.

"David!" Emma yelped. "What are you doing ?!" She moved to pull him away, but Killian grabbed her arm.

"Stay back, love, you don't know what's going on. Trust me when I say that nothing you've known up until now has been the truth."

As if to prove his point, Snow's expression turned into a snarl, and she glared viciously at Regina. "You broke my curse! You were never supposed to be able to love! No one was supposed to love you !"

Emma frowned, asking, "Wait, your curse? I thought Zelena cast the curse?"

Snow's glare turned to her then, and she spat, "Oh shut up, you idiot child."

While Emma's mouth hung open in shock, David shifted between them, keeping the tip of his swords pointed at Snow. "Don't talk to my daughter like that," he growled.

After making Henry promise to stay back, Regina stepped forward, her hand still in flame, but her demeanor calm - if quietly livid. "I'll hand it to you, Snow, you had us all fooled for a long time. Playing the innocent victim routine. Running from the big bad Evil Queen, and nobody questioned it. Not even me. You were very thorough." Stalking closer, she grabbed Snow by the throat, a scream as the flames touched her strangled by the strength of Regina's grip.

"Mom!" Henry yelled, at the same time that Emma screamed, "Regina, what the hell ?!" Emma immediately threw out her hands, intending to use magic to blast Regina away, but although she could feel her magic, it didn't come out of her hands like it normally did.

Leaning close, Regina glared into the hate-filled eyes staring back at her. "What did you do to them?" she growled. "The ones who died. Where are they ?"

Snow's neck flushed red around where Regina held her, and the skin under her grip began to slowly blister and scorch. She struggled against the grip and even sent a pulse of her own magic against the other woman, but it only made Regina hold on tighter. Finally she gave in, and choked out, "Pur… purgatory."

Regina's hand flexed, loosening her grip just enough for Snow to breathe a little easier. "And how do we get them?"

"They'll come on their own," Snow answered, her voice raspy, the smell of burning flesh beginning to fill the air. "All but one."

" Who ?" Regina asked, her mind racing. Who wasn't in Storybrooke and hadn't died? Who was left? Then she realized, "The baby. You bitch ." The magical fire around her hand flared white, causing Snow's skin to sizzle quietly.

"Regina, stop," David finally said, stepping in and putting his hand on her shoulder. The flames disappeared instantly, although Regina didn't let her go. "She's… That's my baby," he said quietly.

At once, Regina's gaze dropped to Snow's belly, and her expression twisted in rage, although she finally released her grip entirely and stepped back, leaving a livid burn, mottled with red blisters and black scorches, across Snow's throat. "You'll pay for what you've done to my family and my kingdom."

"Perhaps," Snow agreed. "But not today. This little thing," she curved her hands over her belly, "protects me."

"For now," David interjected.

Snow continued as if he hadn't spoken, "And then you'll have to find me." With a grin, her eyes glowed white for a moment, and then she disappeared in a white cloud.

Once she was gone, David sheathed his sword and he and Regina turned to Emma and Henry. Regina's eyes widened as she saw her son watching her with a horrified expression, and she instantly became contrite. "Henry, I promise you, I'm not turning into the Evil Queen. Things are… different than you believe. Than everyone believed. I'm sorry you had to see that. I lost control."

"Wh… what's going on?" Henry asked, sounding freaked out.

"We'll explain everything," Regina promised, "but first let's get somewhere more comfortable." For a moment, her eyes turned from their usual deep brown to a vibrant purple, and when they faded back, they were in her office at the town hall.


	3. Chapter 2

I was gonna wait til tomorrow to post this, but I got impatient LOL

* * *

Emma sat down heavily on the couch, Henry and Killian sitting on either side of her, while Regina sat in the chair across from them and David stood behind her, his hands resting on her shoulders. His touch seemed to calm her, which confused Emma even more. "Okay, we're more comfortable, now what the hell is going on?"

Regina took a deep breath, smoothing her coat down over her thighs before looking at the two very confused people before her. "It's a very long story," she warned. "But I'll try to condense it as much as possible. The gist of it is that everything you know about the Enchanted Forest, everything in that storybook," she nodded to the tome resting on Henry's lap, "is a lie. The land we're from is called the Realm, and it contains many different, wondrous places, and many kingdoms. Specifically, we're from the Four Kingdoms." She paused there, observing their expressions. Henry seemed curious, if a little cautious, but Emma was clearly skeptical.

"Whose kingdoms are they?" Henry asked. "Were you queen there, too?"

Letting out a quiet laugh, Regina nodded. "Yes, I was queen. The Four Kingdoms is a single kingdom, ruled jointly by four monarchs. I am the Queen of Cups, David is the King of Swords, Gold is King of Coins, and Eugenia - Granny - is Queen of Staves."

"Oh come on, Regina," Emma snorted. "Those are tarot cards."

"So you're willing to accept being the child of Disney characters, but not the idea that tarot may be similarly inspired by other realms?" Regina asked pointedly.

Emma grumbled under her breath, and Killian reached out to pat her leg. "Best to listen to what the queen has to say, love. Reserve judgement until you've heard the entire tale."

Regina waited until Emma nodded before continuing. "Our kingdom was at war with the White Kingdom, the one ruled by Snow, for decades. Other kingdoms were drawn in and took sides, as did the races who lived nearby. The fairies and dragons sided with us, while the dwarves and merfolk chose Snow.

"We were able to keep her kingdom at bay for a very long time, and despite the war, our kingdom flourished. Until one day, the sun darkened in the sky and white clouds rolled over the land. And we woke up in Storybrooke. Suddenly I was someone else, the Evil Queen, ecstatic at the curse's success, determined to get my happy ending. And years passed, I adopted Henry, and then, Emma, you came to town. You broke the curse." Regina smiled almost wistfully. "Unfortunately for all of us, the curse you broke never really existed. It was just part of the larger curse. Part of the story Snow had crafted to keep me miserable, to make sure I lost everything."

Behind her, David squeezed her shoulders and murmured, "You haven't lost everything, Regina. We'll get it all back."

Humming, Regina reached up with one hand to rest over his.

"Okay, what is up with you two?" Emma finally asked. "You're acting… _weird_."

"Well that's the other thing." Regina took a deep breath. "David was never married to Snow. They were never True Loves - True Love doesn't even exist in the Realm, not the way you understand it, anyway. In fact… David is married to me."

Emma looked horrified and immediately blurted out, "You are _not_ my mother!"

That made Regina laugh, and she shook her head."No, I most certainly am not. But neither is Snow, although I can understand if you still feel a certain level of affection and loyalty toward her, having thought that she was."

"Wait." Henry frowned deeply. "If you and David are married, and you're not Mom's mom… who is? Did David cheat on you?" He stole a glance to the man in question, who gave a warm smile.

"I didn't cheat on Regina, Henry." David paused then, looking down at Regina, who seemed to sense his attention and tilted her head up to meet his gaze. They communicated silently for a moment, before Regina nodded and looked back toward Henry. "Do you know what polyamory is?" David asked.

Henry shook his head, and Emma gaped at them for a moment before quickly recovering and exclaiming, "That is _not_ appropriate for Henry to know about!"

"It's the way of life in the Realm, Emma," David explained. "Everyone, even children, are aware of it, just as children in the land without magic are aware of monogamous relationships."

"We're not in the Realm!" Emma argued. "We're in Storybrooke!"

"Actually, I'm fairly certain we're in both," Regina pointed out. "I glanced out the window when I first brought us all here, and last time I checked, I couldn't see a castle from my office window. I think that's what happened when the ground shook - the Realm was united again, and Storybrooke was merged into it."

Crossing her arms over her chest, Emma doubled down, saying, "It's still inappropriate. Henry's too young to know about that sort of thing."

"Miss Swan," Regina sighed. "This is our way of life. You're turning it into something taboo when it's not. Henry will learn about it, soon, and it can either be from us, or from other children, and let me assure you, they will be much less tactful than I will. Besides," she added with a wave of her hand. "I'm sure Henry already has some idea what it's about, just from this conversation."

When everyone looked at him, Henry blushed pink and cautiously offered, "Um, more than two people in a relationship?"

Emma frowned, complaining, "Why'd you have to mention monogamous relationships, Regina?"

"Mom, I figured it out before that," Henry pointed out. "Poly means many, like how a polyglot is someone who can speak a lot of languages, and amor means love."

Regina beamed proudly while Emma looked torn between being proud and bothered by his deduction. "Fine, you might as well tell him," she finally relented.


	4. Chapter 3

_"Mom, I figured it out before that," Henry pointed out. "Poly means many, like how a polyglot is someone who can speak a lot of languages, and amor means love."_

_Regina beamed proudly while Emma looked torn between being proud and bothered by his deduction. "Fine, you might as well tell him," she finally relented._

"You're absolutely right, Henry. Polyamory is when someone is involved with more than one person. In the Realm, it's how most relationships work. David and I are married, but we both have other relationships with other people, and we both," she paused for just a moment, "have children with those other people."

"You have other kids?" Henry and Emma asked in unison. Emma added, "I thought you couldn't have kids?"

Pressing her lips together in a tight smile, Regina answered, "I couldn't have children under Snow's curse, no. But Henry does have several siblings from before the curse."

"How many?" Henry asked curiously. "Do I already know them?"

Regina smiled, thinking of her children that she hadn't seen for decades. "Four. The youngest is a baby, but um, Snow had kidnapped it before it hatched." At the confused expressions that crossed Henry and Emma's faces, she explained, "The baby's mother is Maleficent, and she laid an egg. Snow stole the egg. We don't even know if it's a boy or a girl."

"I thought you said these were your kids?" Emma asked.

"They are," Regina nodded. "I'm the… father, for lack of a better word. Magic can do much, including allowing two women to procreate. Anyway, next is Roland, who is five, and his father is Robin. Hood," she added after a beat.

Henry grinned. "That's awesome."

"He's not _actually_ Robin Hood, that was just part of the curse," Regina explained. "The next you know. I believe Grace is in your class?"

"She's Jefferson's daughter, right? The Mad Hatter?"

Regina nodded, but before she could reply, Emma cut in. "Hold up, you had a kid with that guy? He drugged and kidnapped me!"

"And I murdered people," Regina said sharply. "The curse changed our personalities. You're going to find that most of the people you know are quite a bit different than you remember."

"Fine," Emma grumbled.

"Who's the last?" Henry asked.

Regina hesitated, and behind her, David squeezed her shoulders, knowing what was coming would be hard for everyone to accept.

"Regina," Emma said slowly, her voice low, almost warning. "Who is it?"

Clearing her throat, Regina folded her hands in her lap. "My oldest. You, mm, you know him. His name is… Baelfire."

There was a long pause, then Henry asked in confusion, "My dad?"

That sparked Emma's reaction, and her eyes bulged. "_Neal_? You're Neal's _mother_?! You're… you're Henry's _grandmother_! Jesus, Regina, that's just not right! Wait," she gasped, realizing, "you had a baby with _Gold_?"

"Don't sound so disgusted, dear," Regina replied wryly. "He's a good man. He's also your step-father."

"That sounds like incest," Emma groaned, making a face and shuddering.

Those from the Realm all chuckled, and Killian patted Emma's leg. "It's not, don't worry, love."

"Okay well, are you going to actually tell me who this mystery mother is?" Emma asked, almost defensive, still not sure if she believed any of what they were saying.

It was David who answered, smiling slightly and saying, "It's Belle."

Emma groaned, leaning forward and putting her head in her hands. "God, my life makes no sense."

"Less sense than when you thought you were the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming?" Regina asked.

"I think it's cool," Henry piped up. Remembering Regina's comment about seeing a castle, he got up from the couch and made his way to the window. "Hey, there _is_ a castle out there!" he exclaimed, seeing the structure on the other side of town, rising above the tops of the buildings.

Noises began to filter in through the closed door, and David finally stepped from behind Regina. "I should go out there and reassure everyone. I'll let them know you're explaining things to Emma and Henry. Let me know when you want me to start sending people in to meet or re-meet them, okay?" he said, looking down at Regina.

Regina smiled warmly and nodded. "I will," she agreed. She lifted her chin, and David started to lean down to kiss her before pausing and glancing at Emma.

"Whatever," Emma said, waving him on. "Go for it."

David chuckled, then continued his descent, kissing Regina softly before pulling away and heading out of the office.


	5. Chapter 4

It took David a while to calm everyone down, and while he did that, Regina and Killian continued to explain what life in the Realm was like to Emma and Henry.

They talked about the different lands, Oz and Wonderland and Neverland and everywhere else that had once been part of the Realm before Snow's curse had torn it apart, only to be united again with its breaking. They also talked about the people, those Emma and Henry had met who were different than they knew, and those who had died and would be returning.

Neither quite believed that the villains they knew, Cora and Zelena and Peter Pan, were actually good people who had been twisted by the curse, but they cautiously agreed to give them a chance. Regina also explained more about how relationships worked in the Realm, that bisexuality was common to the point of majority, and prior to the curse, Regina, David, and most of those they were involved with all shared a castle. She was careful to not be too explicit in front of the twelve-year-old, but Emma assumed the shared accommodations were to make it easier for rotating couples to have sex.

After a while, Killian started to shift anxiously in his seat and glance at the door, and Regina finally took pity on him and dismissed him. He explained quickly to Emma that he needed to find someone, then left.

"Who's he looking for?" Henry asked, back sitting on the couch once more after his game of 'spot the differences' at the window came to an end.

Regina debated whether it was her place to tell them, before deciding it didn't matter - they'd find out soon enough, anyway. "He's looking for his son, Nicholas. The curse made him and Ava twins, although they're not actually related." Under her breath, she added, "Which you can tell by looking at them."

"Hook has a kid," Emma half-asked, stunned. She never would have expected the pirate, of all people, to have children.

"Yes, _Killian_," Regina emphasized the name, "has a child. Nicholas's mother is Abigail, also known as Kathryn Nolan. I'm unsure if they're still involved."

Emma had an odd look on her face, like she couldn't decide whether she was disappointed or not.

Clearing her throat, Regina clasped her hands together on her lap and said, "Well, if neither of you have any further questions at the moment, I'll let David know that he can start sending people in."

Henry and Emma both nodded, and Regina glanced toward the door, her eyes turning purple once more.

"Oh, hey, question," Emma piped up, causing Regina to give her an exasperated look, given she'd _just_ said she didn't have any questions. "What's with the purple eyes?"

"Magic works differently in the Realm," Regina explained. "I'm sure you've noticed by now. Every magic user has a signature color, the color their magic manifests as, and when a sorcerer uses their magic, their eyes turn that color. Just now, I was communicating telepathically with David, to ask him to let Belle in."

Henry's eyes blew wide and he bounced in his seat. "You can talk to people telepathically?! That's so cool!"

Regina chuckled and dipped her head. "Not anyone, just David. Telepathy takes a lot of time and effort and skill to learn, and it can only be done with people you share a bond with. But I'll explain all about that, later."

Just as she finished speaking, the door opened, and a nervous-looking Belle stepped inside.

Standing Regina stepped close to her, taking her hands and lowering her voice, almost too quiet for Henry and Emma to hear as she quietly said, "Belle, I'm so sorry for what I did under the curse."

Although slightly distracted by Emma, Belle met Regina's gaze and smiled. "It's all right, Regina. It's not your fault; I know you'd never intentionally hurt me."

Regina smiled and squeezed her hands, then let go and led her over to the couch.

Despite preparing herself, Belle's eyes filled with tears at the sight of Emma, and she whispered a soft, "Oh," as she looked at her. She'd seen Emma before, of course, talked to her, spent a little time together, but she never _knew_. She'd never looked into her face and seen the baby she'd had ripped away from her.

Emma shifted uncomfortably under the scrutiny, wondering how many times she was going to experience a woman her own age looking at her like a child, before realizing that if all of this was true, then Snow had been _faking_ the entire thing, tears and all. And if it wasn't true, then Belle was faking it right now. And Emma wasn't sure which one she preferred.

"I don't want to overwhelm you," Belle said after a moment of gathering herself back together. She sat on the couch next to Emma, taking the spot Killian had vacated. "I know this has to be… well, I'm sure 'weird' is an understatement." She smiled a little when Emma let out a single chuckle. "I'm not expecting anything from you, Emma, you need to know that. I just want to get to know you better."

"Okay," Emma agreed, nodding a little hesitantly.

"Why don't you go to the diner?" Regina suggested. "You can grab a coffee and talk. I'm sure you both have a lot of questions for each other. And, no offence, but I'd rather you didn't have that conversation in my office."

They both agreed, a little tentatively on Emma's part, and left, leaving Regina and Henry alone in the office.


	6. Chapter 5

With a bit of a nervous smile, Regina asked, "Are you ready to meet your siblings, Henry?"

Henry hesitated, not quite sure how he felt about going from being an only child to one of several.

When he didn't answer, Regina moved to sit next to him on the couch, smiling warmly. "It's a little overwhelming, isn't it?" she asked, her voice soft and sympathetic.

Nodding, Henry looked down, twisting his hands together in his lap, a nervous habit he'd picked up from Regina. "Everything's different all of a sudden. Even you, you're not the same. You're… more open, warmer. You're like you were when it was just us, before I found out I was adopted."

Regina hummed, thinking about the more carefree years of Henry's early childhood, when she'd been able to let go of the idea of the Evil Queen and simply be his mother. "I think you helped me break through the curse," she said, reaching out and resting her hand over his. "Having you reminded me of who I am, even if I didn't realize it at the time."

"Yeah but…" Henry pressed his lips together tightly for a moment, glanced quickly at Regina, then stared back down at their hands in his lap. "How can I compare to the others?" he asked quietly. "They're your real kids, I'm just adopted."

"Hey," Regina said sternly, bringing her hand under his chin to lift his head so she could meet his gaze. "Just because I adopted you doesn't mean I love you any less. I _chose_ you, Henry. No matter what, you will always be the one I chose. You will always be the one that found me underneath the Evil Queen."

Henry twisted his lips to the side, then said, "I guess I'm being dumb, aren't it?"

"No, sweetheart," Regina shook her head, pulling him into a hug. "Everything is changing very quickly, and it doesn't surprise me at all that you feel a little off-balance, a little unsure about what your role is. There's going to be some adjusting on everyone's parts, including yours, and it's okay to be worried about what the future it going to look like. But just know that you can always come talk to me, and you will always be my little prince."

Wrapping his arms around her tightly, Henry murmured, "I love you, Mom."

Regina smiled and squeezed him affectionately as she laid a kiss to the top of his head. "I love you, too, so much."

After a few moments, Henry pulled away and stood up, taking a deep breath. "Okay, I'm ready. I'm gonna sit over there, though," he said, pointing to the chair Regina had been seated in earlier, then sitting down.

Once Henry had sat down, the door opened, and Grace and Roland stepped inside, both a little hesitant until Regina glanced over the back of the couch to see them.

"Momma!" both yelled, rushing around the couch and tackling her enthusiastically.

Regina started laughing as she hugged them both, and tears spilled down her cheeks. "Oh my babies!" she exclaimed, pressing kisses all over their faces.

"Momma, I missed you," Grace whimpered, nestled tight into Regina's side, arms locked around her waist with one of Regina's arms resting over her back.

"I missed you, too!" Roland exclaimed, leaning into Regina chest after having clamored onto her lap. "Lots and lots!"

"I missed both of you, so much!" It didn't matter that they technically didn't remember each other, some part of their hearts had been empty, and with their memories restored and with the children once more held in Regina's arms, that hole was filled.

Several minutes of cuddles and kisses passed, Henry watching with a mix of curiosity and jealousy, before Grace glanced over at him shyly. "Hi, Henry."

"Hi, Grace," Henry replied almost automatically, looking back and forth between her and Regina. There wasn't much of a resemblance, not like there was with Roland, but Grace had clearly inherited her deep brown eyes from Regina. "This is weird."

Regina breathed a chuckle, the sound drowned out by Grace's giggle, and agreed, "It is." Bouncing her knees to jostle Roland on her lap, she tilted her head to look at him, asking, "Baby, would you like to meet your big brother Henry?"

Roland's eyes lit up at the prospect of having another brother, and he nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah!"

Pulling her arm from around Grace in order to turn Roland around, Regina motioned to Henry. "Roland, this is your brother, Henry. Henry, this is Roland, my son with Robin."

Roland hopped off Regina's lap and fearlessly walked up to Henry, sticking his hand out for a polite shake. "Hi, Henry!"

Henry couldn't help but laugh a little at the boy's vibrance, and shook his hand. "Hi, Roland."

Immediately climbing up into the chair with Henry, Roland squished in next to him and began chattering a mile a minute, talking about everything from his bedroom before the curse, to what it was like living in the forest, to the ice cream Regina and Robin had taken him for the week before.

Regina watched for a moment to make sure that Henry was okay with Roland, relaxing when he grinned at the little boy, then she turned her attention back to Grace, drawing her fingers through her silky dark blonde hair. "You've all grown up so much in the last two years," she said wistfully.

"Yeah, but we're together now," Grace replied, snuggling back into Regina's side. "And I know you won't let anyone take us away again."

"Absolutely not," Regina agreed. "We'll never be separated like that again, I promise."

Grace was quiet, thinking, and after a pause, she asked, "Momma? What's gonna happen to Queen Snow?"

Regina hummed, biting down on her desire to call for the execution of her enemy. "I'm not sure, sweetie. The Court will have to convene and-" she paused in the middle of her sentence, tilting her head as her eyes turned purple again. After a moment, a smile bloomed across her lips, and then the door opened.

Henry looked up at the movement, and his eyes grew wide and he jumped out of his chair, exclaiming, "Dad!" as Neal stepped into the room.

* * *

_This is as far as I currently have written, so updates might be a little further between from now on. And if anyone has any ideas of things they wanna see, let me know! I'm open to adding things if they fit my overall vision for the story._


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